Seattle Seahawks: Russell Wilson Fastest Quarterback Out The Gate

By Timothy Holland

Joe Nicholson- US PRESSWIRE

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson has gotten the jump on his 2012 draft classmates. With his team sitting at 2-1, Wilson has a better record than Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, Ryan Tannehill and Brandon Weedon. Luck, Griffin III and Tannehill are 1-2 while Weedon has yet to win a game.

Of the five starting rookie quarterbacks Wilson was thought to be the one who would not play much this season. The Colts, Redskins, Browns and Dolphins all drafted their quarterbacks with plans to play them right away. Seattle drafted Wilson after signing free agent Matt Flynn to a three year $26 million contract. Wilson beat out Flynn with a strong preseason and head coach Pete Carroll made the decision to go with him.

Wilson came to Seattle out of the University of Wisconsin by way of North Carolina State University. He has a reputation of having a never say die attitude. Before enrolling at Wisconsin, Wilson played baseball and football for North Carolina State. Despite having a strong arm and mobility the knock on him was his size. Wilson is believed to be 5′ 11” which is not considered tall enough to succeed in the NFL. This despite the fact New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees is about the same height and won a Super Bowl in 2009.

Wilson’s never say die attitude has been evident in the first three games of 2012. In week one he had his team poised to score the go ahead touchdown with time running out against the Arizona Cardinals. The Seahawks could not score on four plays inside the 10 and lost 20-16. Monday night he threw a controversial Hail Mary pass to wide receiver Golden Tate to beat the Green Bay Packers 14-12.

Though Seattle is 2-1 Wilson has done no better than his rookie counterparts statistically. He has only led the Seahawks offense to 50 points (Seattle scored one touchdown on a blocked punt). Griffin III has the Redskins offense averaging 30 points a game. Luck, Tannehill and Weedon’s offenses have all scored more points than Wilson’s. The Seahawks defense is mainly responsible for their 2-1 start. However, Wilson has been the starting quarterback and deserves some credit for Seattle’s success.

Sunday will mark the first turn of the NFL season. There are three more turns to go.

Right now Wilson is a length up on Luck, Griffin III and Tannehill. He is two lengths ahead of Weedon.